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Wednesday, January 25, 2012

The Boring Sameness of Crash Days

My teen son, Jamie, and I have both been crashed this week. Turns out we both had a mild fever yesterday, so I guess we were exposed to some sort of virus. What luck, huh? Jamie only made it to school one day last week and figures he picked up a virus then. It's been a very difficult winter for him so far.

I was actually excited yesterday to discover we had fevers. I took him into the local clinic to get his weekly saline IV, in the hopes that it would perk him up a bit, and the doctor found the fever when he was taking Jamie's vitals. It was only 99.5, but his normal temperature is only about 97.5, so that counts! At least now we know why we both feel bad this week. Exposure to a virus can cause a nasty crash, but now we know Jamie's is probably not due to some very mild exertion this weekend, and mine is probably not due to my Lyme disease coming back (I have been paranoid about that possibility!)

I am getting sick and tired of lying in the family room in sweats, unshowered, unable to get much done, and listening to the TV all day long, as I'm sure he is, too. It's that dull, boring sameness that gets to me after a while, and the cold, gray weather outside only adds to the dull, dreary mood inside. We have pretty much watched every TV show available on demand that we have any interest in, plus quite a few on DVD as well. I have been trying to get a little done on my laptop while lying down because I really hate to feel unproductive, but it is frustrating not to have my usual motivation and drive.

I shouldn't be complaining because crashes lasting more than a day are rare for me now, and I'm not severely crashed this week...just feeling crummy enough that I know I can't manage getting groceries or much cooking or most of the items on my to-do list. So, I am trying to stay in good spirits and make the best of this time with Jamie, though I know he is itching to get up and moving, too. I managed to scrape together one more meal from the freezer tonight, and Jamie actually got up off the family room couch a few minutes ago to go down to the basement (and lie on the couch down there) and play a video game with his brother - that's a really big deal!! I can hear them laughing down there - there is no sweeter sound. And while he's down there, I get my beloved couch back temporarily!

So, we are trying to make the best of yet another week spent horizontally. Hopefully, we will both recover soon and get back to real life.

How do you make the best of crash days? How do you keep your spirits up when the dull sameness sets in?

8 comments:

Oh, gosh, Sue, sorry to hear you and Jamie are doing poorly. It must be so hard to watch him struggle too. My temp. is normally 97.5 too. So a fever for me is when it goes higher than that!Hope things improve quickly for you both. Hope you enjoyed your couch time when Jamie was downstairs :)

Oh Sue, I think that's the best question ever. I wish I had an answer. Sometimes I do little things like read a fav. book, watch a movie (stuff you mention)...but when the crash days come every day for a while, it gets hard.

As for the fevers, I get them quite frequently when I'm crashed. Low grade between 99.5 and 100. It's been part of the M.E. since the start.

Sue, I can so relate to your post. Both my teenage girls have been crashed since November and I have run out of tricks to lighten the boredom mostly because they have no energy to do creative things. We watch for birds at the feeder, watch u-tube, listen to music ( when volume isn't a problem), dream of vacations we'll someday take. Good luck!

So sorry to hear your daughters have been going through such a difficult period.

Have you considered joining our Parents group on Facebook? It's a wonderfully warm & supportive group of parents whose kids/teens/young adults have CFS and related illnesses who completely understand what you're going through.

Good question, and I wish I had some answers. I am in the middle of a "brain crash" at the moment, which means I cant tolerate TV, or audio tapes, or reading, phone is limited to a couple of minutes, (in person visits likewise), and Internet must be rationed into small bites. In my experience, these brain crashes last a few weeks.

I am somewhere between bedbound and housebound, so there isn't much physical I can do either. It's very boring and incredibly isolating.

This has been a bad month for me. I was going batty this week. Hubs finally took me out for a car ride today. The sun and warm air were nice. Being in the car instead of the house was nice. My fav thing to do is go to a beach and sit in the car with the windows down so I can listen to the surf. Just being out of the house is a treat. It is particularly difficult during the winter months when the backyard is off limits.

I'm with you, Baffled - getting out in the fresh air and sunshine always helps! And there is nothing like being near the ocean - the smell of the salt air, the sound of the waves - it is instantly calming and peaceful. You are lucky to live close enough to the shore to visit like that!

I wanted to introduce myself since I'm now following your blog. I'm somewhat new to ME/CFS, so I've been trying to learn from those who came before me. So far, I check in with your blog and one other. You have a clear, concise writing style, which I appreciate.

I've also started my own blog, and I invite you to visit it sometime. http://quixoticmeblog.blogspot.com/

I have had Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) since March 2002. Both of my sons also got ME/CFS at ages 6 and 10. Our younger son fully recovered after 10 years of mild illness. Our older son still has ME/CFS and also has Lyme disease plus two other tick infections. This blog is about how our family lives with chronic illness, with a focus on living and enjoying our lives in spite of these challenges.

About Me

I'm a freelance writer who loves to read and cook. My husband and I have two sons, and we all enjoy travel and being outdoors. My older son and I both have chronic illnesses, but we focus on finding joy in every day!